Portland, Oregon, my home town, is a wonderful city! I live in the NE neighborhood my father grew up in, where his grandparents cultivated an orchard in the 19th century, and their parents passed through as pioneers on the Oregon Trail.

But like most Oregonians, I am a newcomer. The Chinook, who lived here for millennia, were and are resourceful, resilient, highly intelligent people.

Their creative spirit permeates this region, and wild places are still close by to teach and inspire us.
​Maybe that's why the Pacific NW is a hub of creative innovation, existing as it does, within a unique and sustaining natural and cultural landscape.